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New Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors

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Paperback. Slight wear on upper and outer edges fo text. Cover slightly dented at back lower corners. Otherwise VG

195 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2002

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About the author

Gordon D. Fee

71 books210 followers
Gordon Fee was Professor Emeritus of New Testament at Regent College, where he taught for sixteen years. His teaching experience also included serving schools in Washington, California, Kentucky, as well as Wheaton College in Illinois (five years) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Massachusetts (twelve years).

Gordon Fee was a noted New Testament scholar, having published several books and articles in his field of specialization, New Testament textual criticism. He also published a textbook on New Testament interpretation, co-authored two books for lay people on biblical interpretation, as well as scholarly-popular commentaries on 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus and on Galatians, and major commentaries on 1 Corinthians and Philippians. He is also the author of a major work on the Holy Spirit and the Person of Christ in the letters of Paul.

Gordon Fee served as the general editor of the New International Commentary series, as well as on the NIV revision committee that produced the TNIV. Besides his ability as a biblical scholar, he was a noted teacher and conference speaker. He has given the Staley Distinguished Christian Scholar lectures on fifteen college campuses as well as the annual NT lectures at Southwestern Baptist Seminary, North Park Seminary, the Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary, the Canadian Theological Seminary, Duke Divinity School, Golden Gate Baptist, Anderson School of Theology, Asbury Seminary, and Chrichton College. An ordained minister with the Assemblies of God, Gordon Fee was well known for his manifest concern for the renewal of the church.

Gordon Fee was married and had four married children.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
Profile Image for Jeff.
70 reviews7 followers
July 25, 2017
New Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors by Gordon D. Fee

What is exegesis as defined by Fee?

"The term exegesis is used in this book in a consciously limited sense to refer to the historical investigation into the meaning of the biblical text. The presupposition lying behind this task is that the biblical books had 'authors' and 'readers,' and that the authors intended their readers to understand what they wrote (see, e.g., 1 Cor. 5:9-11; 1 John 2:1; see the Appendix). Exegesis therefore answers the question, What did the biblical author mean? It has to do both with what he said (the content itself) and why he said it at any given point (the literary context)--as much as that might be discovered, given our distance in time, language, and culture. Furthermore, exegesis is primarily concerned with intentionality: What did the author intend his original readers to understand?"

This book is for those very serious about exegesis. It's very broad, but accessible for any student, pastor or anyone serious about studying the Bible.

Although the book was originally written 20 years ago, it has stood the test of time and has been revised in both the 2nd and current 3rd edition to keep it very up to date.

Is it necessary to know Greek to utilize the book?

This is addressed in the Preface to the first edition but also in the Introduction to the 3rd edition:

"A final word to those who use only the English Bible. First, you need to take heart that you can learn to do exegesis as well as anyone else. Knowing Greek gives one obvious advantages in several matters of detail. But the person without Greek who is willing to do a bit of extra work can enter into the full joys of this discipline. You must take seriously the need to learn the Greek alphabet; that will give you direct access to most of the better tools, especially when it comes to the study of words."

For those who do know Greek the book goes in-depth into using Greek as part of exegesis.

By taking a look at the Amazon link you can "Search inside this book" and start with the Table of Contents to get a good overview of what's covered.

Fee mentions a wide array of resources for research related to each step. Bibliographic material is mentioned within each chapter in addition to a whole chapter devoted to the material, based on category.

One could easily spend over $2000 on these books which may be a little overwhelming for some. For those without an extensive library of their own, the help of a public library or even at the minimum—the internet, a couple of good study Bibles and a couple of in-depth commentaries covering the passage you will be exegeting—one could get by and do most of the things outlined in the book.

Also overwhelming is the sheer number of steps required in the first chapter, many of which are explained in the second chapter. This is geared to a student who will be writing a paper on a passage of Scripture. The third chapter abbreviates the steps for pastors who have approximately ten hours a week to prepare a sermon.

I thought it would be helpful if the steps in chapter three were directly correlated to the steps in the first two chapters.

It's important for everyone to carefully read the whole book. For English only readers, reading the portions related to Greek are still valuable. For students, the chapter for pastors is important for remembering application, prayer and reflection so that it doesn't become only an academic exercise. Pastors will want to be very familiar with the first two chapters so they can tailor the steps to their needs with Fee's guidance as outlined in the third chapter.

The Appendix, new to the third edition, explains what Reader-Response Criticism is, how popular this has become and how dangerous it is. I see it everywhere and this is not a good thing.

Personal notes:
As noted in the review, the number of steps involved can be overwhelming for a neophyte exegetor. As I was first reading the book I was wondering when the steps would finally come to an end. But once I got through all the steps and read the abbreviated portion for pastors, I could see how I can make it all work. I'm not using the pastor's chapter as a way to do less work. (I would rather spend more time exegeting and not have to try to write a sermon. Now that's hard work.) I went through the whole book and wrote down the steps that I can do—not knowing much Greek—along with page numbers and topics so that I can go through it one step at a time. Baby steps.

Another blogger bought this book for me which was on my Amazon Wish List. As one with a small library and small budget, I can't say how much this is appreciated.

Paperback: 195 pages
Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press; 3rd edition (March 2002)
ISBN-10: 0664223168
ISBN-13: 978-0664223168
Book Cover Design: Really cool

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198 reviews2 followers
February 21, 2020
Un très bon manuel dans lequel Gordon Fee nous prend par la main pour nous apprendre à faire de l'exégèse. Il donne notamment des conseils sur comment lire un texte avec appareil critique, un dictionnaire de grecque ancien etc...
Il ne nous laisse pas seul dans le choix des outils en proposant de nombreuses bibliographies (évidemment en anglais) .

À noter aussi que pour Fee il faut au minimum apprendre l'alphabet grec pour avoir accès aux différents outils nécessaires pour une bonne exégèse.
Profile Image for Becca.
395 reviews44 followers
March 2, 2020
I used this book in undergrad as a basis for a research paper in my 2nd year (koine) Greek class, and it was an excellent resource.

This book is great for anyone learning how to do New Testament exegesis, whether for a paper or for 'real life', though it has a more scholarly bent in my memory. It shows students how powerful the tool of translation can be in exegesis. Very straightforward. I would recommend this book and Osborne's The Hermeneutical Spiral (as classics, anyway––there might be better resources out there now).
Profile Image for Rachel Winkler.
58 reviews1 follower
July 29, 2025
Super helpful reference book and step-by-step guide to exegesis! Not a book that I would read cover-to-cover if it hadn’t been assigned for a class, but I will definitely come back to it as a guide for working through passages of Scripture when writing papers or preparing Bible study/small group lessons. Thankful for the work of men like Fee who have distilled so much information down into step-by-step processeses so that the church can benefit from learning how to rightly divide the Word!
Profile Image for Dave Betts.
98 reviews2 followers
December 12, 2022
An outstanding guide for those with prior experience as exegetes. Fee is comprehensive and academically rigorous but his pastoral focus prevents the excessive or unnecessary intellectualism that so many of us can fall prey to.

Personally, I found this book highlighted a few areas in my exegetical processes that had become a little slack over the last few years, and for that I'm profoundly grateful.
Profile Image for Zack.
391 reviews70 followers
September 15, 2017
A fairly helpful how-to manual for aspects of exegetical work. His bibliographical recommendations seem to be reprinted two or three times throughout...probably because this volume isn't intended to be read from cover to cover. The discussion of textual issues is given too much time from the preacher's perspective. This is more useful as an academic guidebook.
Profile Image for Patrick Berthalon.
80 reviews
November 25, 2025
Un de mes théologien préférés qui vient de décéder récemment... Une grande perte mais en même temps un héritage formidable laissé au travers de ses ouvrages.
Profile Image for Anthony Ingram.
41 reviews
October 7, 2023
Honestly, I bet when this book first came out it was amazing. However, in 2023, it is a bit outdated as well as the other amazing textbook/resources that are available that are written more clearly and have updated resource lists. I am thinking of Andrew Naselli’s NT Exegesis book - it is practically the same as this book - however it is more clear, better layout, and has updated resource lists for each step of the exegesis process. No hate to Gordon Fee, love his work and what he did, but this one is just a bit outdated, and a little bit of a snooze 😅
Profile Image for Vesselin.
33 reviews
June 21, 2016
Не е лошо това ръководство, но за България е по-слабо приложимо. Авторът разяснява как да се използват много други пособия за работа с текста. Българските издатели са се постарали да дадат заглавията на някои помагала на български, но са крайно недостатъчни. Всичките упътвания за това как да се използват конкретни други книги, са непотребни, освен в случай, че не бъдат набавени (най-вече от чужбина). Ако живеех в САЩ и четях някое от изданията на английски, вероятно щях да добавя още една звездичка. Оценката ми е към приложимостта на това издание.
3 reviews8 followers
July 24, 2018
This book is very enlightening and teaches the reader many techniques for exegeting scripture. I liked New Testament Exegesis much more than Old Testament Exegesis, partially because I enjoy Gordon Fee's writing style. It was much less dry than the first installment of this series and just as beneficial.
Profile Image for Jeremy Manuel.
540 reviews3 followers
March 15, 2020
Books that may be useful in certain circumstances, but not very enjoyable or even designed to read as a book are hard books to rate. New Testament Exegesis is one of those kind of books. It isn't a very enjoyable book to read, in fact the book flat out says that it is more of a reference and guidebook than a book to be read straight through. However, it is a good reference for what it is attempting to do, teach people to do exegesis for a passage, mainly for usage in writing an exegesis paper. What does one do with such a situation?

Personally with the lack of enjoyable reading experience and the very limited application of a book like this I can't rate it too highly. One could use this in the real life situation of sermon prep, but I've been in that world enough to know that you aren't going to have the time for the kind of preparation the book suggests and then actually crafting a sermon afterwards unless you're giving a very academic sermon or in a church position that only requires study, teaching, and preaching. It is good at preparing you for this academic venture, but most people aren't going to be able to use these skills weekly and it makes more sense to rely on a few good commentaries instead.

Since it is a reference trying to introduce you to a skill there are all kinds of examples of how to do certain things within it and also many references to books even more advanced that you can take these certain skills to the next level. So this book also has the misfortune to be one of those introductory academic books that will fill a very small niche, mainly seminary students (I mean it is why I have a copy).

Overall, the book isn't designed to be read as a book, it is more of a reference and learning tool. The book is also for a very specific skill that isn't going to be too useful to the majority of people, I mean there are aspects that are helpful, but the presentation isn't necessarily friendly to those who aren't academics. However, if you're looking for an introductory book on how to do exegesis for an exegesis paper, then you're in luck because this is a very capable one.
Profile Image for Drake Hyman.
83 reviews
October 19, 2019
This book is a fantastic resource and the best guide for an exegetical paper I've yet to read. It's also an excellent guide to sermon writing, diagramming and using exegetical tools like BDAG. And then it's even a great guide to outfitting your pastoral/exegetical library (or if you're low on funds like me: how to use your seminary library). I am excited to use this book later this year to write an exegetical paper on Romans 12:1-2, and feel that in following this guide, I will have the ability to produce substantial work rather than mining that of others in commentaries.

I'm impressed and honestly a bit confounded by Fee's massive knowledge of exegetical literature. I mean seriously, this guy seems to be familiar enough with every lexicon, concordance, commentary set and theological work to carefully guide you through how to use them. I can only hope I will be able to acquire the vast knowledge of and access to so many resources over my life as he has.

I'm disappointed that this book was only a required reading for my Greek Syntax and Exegesis course (an elective I am taking for my Advanced Biblical Studies MDiv) and not for a more general course on sermon writing required by all, like Bible Exposition. This tool is indispensable for people like me who have only a dozen or so experiences writing exegetical papers, which I imagine is the majority of seminary students. If you don't know Greek, this is still likely to be one of the best guides you'll find, and if you know Greek, it is the best. I found it similar in scope to Living by the Book, albeit with a more academic writing style and more focus on the exegetical process (and resources for doing it) than the sermon itself. (4/5)
2 reviews
December 11, 2022
So what's the point of doing exegesis if ultimately you end up with a culturally biased interpretation? I'm not saying that everything Mr. Fee writes in this book is that way, however, in regard to his view on homosexuality I would. And why does he make such a big deal about singling out gays at the beginning of his book. Our life affects our interpretation of Scripture and our interpretation of Scripture affects our life. I would say that Mr. Fee's view of homosexuals is heavily influenced by his life. Rose colored glasses anyone? With many now coming to a different conclusion about what Paul wrote and what he meant in Romans and other NT writings after doing exegesis, I am amazed that Mr. Fee gives no reference to this. Is it that the book is due for another revision? Mr. Fee does a great disservice to the LGBTQ+ community with this book and IMO does his book a disservice also. Why? I trust everything else he has to say much less. Sad. This is my perspective on his book as a non-LGBTQ+ person.
845 reviews2 followers
June 7, 2023
Fee clearly means for you to work through the process of exegesis while following along in the book (thus, "handbook") and his process chart is very helpful for doing this especially in showing similarities/differences between genre. The best part of this book, though, is that he offers Greek and English "tracks." So for someone like me who cannot study in the original Greek, he gives alternate steps to "compensate" and further resources to help you overcome not having a grasp of the original Greek. He acknowledges weaknesses in not being able to study in Greek, but does not think this is a "deal-breaker." His explanation of "sentence flow" for structural analysis is good and better than some of the "phrasing" explanations I've read/heard. He does assume a pretty decent grasp of grammar in order to do this. He has extensive recommendations for further reading in each of the individual steps. All-in-all an excellent resource.
Profile Image for William.
33 reviews
September 4, 2020
There is a treasure trove of information packed into this short book (under 200 pages). If you are writing an exegesis paper or want a step-by-step guide for sound exegesis of the New Testament, this is it. Because of the nature of the book, it reads more like a manual and can be mechanical at times. This is not intended to be devotional reading, but a guide for deep interaction with the text.

The back of the book describes itself as “a lucid step-by-step analysis of exegetical procedures.” Exactly. Highly recommended.
Profile Image for Ethan McCarter.
210 reviews4 followers
November 20, 2020
It's helpful for consulting from time to time. It's a slog to get through cover to cover, and impractical for solo pastors or most ministers that are already working 50 hour weeks. It's definitely good advice for those wondering how to exegete a passage of the New Testament with all the bells and whistles. If you have time to do all that Fee offers then great, but most won't have that time nor is it necessary for most weekly sermons. Again, good for consulting, boring to read, very time consuming and a bit outdated with many of his references.
Profile Image for Justin.
40 reviews
November 1, 2017
Very helpful. I recommend reading it straight through and then keeping it nearby for frequent referencing and using it along with all your other exegetical tools. However, Fee notes: "As you become increasingly familiar with the steps and methods, you may arrive at a point where you can dispense with reference to the guide itself. That is the goal of this primer--that it should get you started, not that it should always be used." pg.134.
Profile Image for Kevin Godinho.
243 reviews13 followers
August 22, 2023
This book is full of helpful information. It is more of a resource to reference than a book to read through. I read through it, but I wouldn't recommend doing that. Check the table of contents and read through the sections you feel might help with what you're dealing with. There are a ton of resource lists in this book, and it may be worth the price of the book just to be able to reference some of those in one place, along with some of the passage flow and citation tips.
Profile Image for Steven Long.
2 reviews
April 10, 2018
Fee brings a clear and concise method of exegesis for the pastor & student alike. It's chock full of examples in both Greek and English, making it easy to follow if you're rusty on your Greek. His section on determining the original text is especially helpful for students who are beginning to understand textual criticism and wish to get their feet wet.

Profile Image for Ross.
171 reviews2 followers
January 11, 2023
Fee offers a useful and carefully detailed guide for the process of exegetical work. What is truly helpful is that he includes advice for people who's grasp of biblical Greek is weak or nonexistent. He also offers a guide specific to sermon preparation in recognition that the needs and demands of that exercise are different.
Profile Image for Jonathan Hatt.
83 reviews2 followers
January 4, 2019
If you want to know what G.K. Beale’s Hermeneutics class is like, just read this book for a condensed version of it.

Biggest problem is that Fee lacks a sufficient discussion of NT use of OT; it’s only a section within Historical Background. It should have a chapter to itself.
Profile Image for Jonathan Asbun.
33 reviews
May 27, 2022
A must have for students and pastors

Although some of the references to the apparatus and softwares are dated, Fee’s comprehensive method of Biblical exegesis and his lengthy list of resources is a must have for anyone interested in serious biblical interpretation and sermon preparation.
A word of warning, at first glance the method appears daunting and the resources called for are massive! Chapter 3 presents an abbreviated version and a more user friendly option.
Profile Image for Jonny.
Author 1 book33 followers
September 20, 2018
Delightful text full of wisdom about interpretion and application. Recommended to pastors especially.
Profile Image for Kristin Boysen.
60 reviews1 follower
May 7, 2019
Incredibly hard to read and not entirely that helpful unless you can read Hebrew.
16 reviews
September 29, 2019
A really good book on exegesis. It's concise and straightforward. All teachers, preachers, and pastors would benefit from owning this book.
2 reviews
January 13, 2023
Moc dobré pojednání, které se uvádí do profesionální i kazatelské exegeze. Moc se mi líbí jeho časové schéma pro chystání kázání.
Profile Image for Grant Geddie.
65 reviews1 follower
August 4, 2019
An excellent step-by-step guide for anyone who desires to properly read and understand the Bible. It is crucial that the reader remembers that many of Fee's strategies for biblical exegesis should not be considered as rigidly as they are stated in his book. His overall principle of rigorous, precise biblical study must be upheld but not at the expense of being chained to his particular methods.
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